Editorial: Keeping a distant eye on Indy's homicides

Indianapolis' grim procession of homicides this year bears watching from a reasonable distance, here in Greater Lafayette, for at least a few reasons.

On Monday, Indianapolis Mayor Greg Ballard announced that more police officers were being put on street patrol in an effort to curb a rise in shooting deaths in specific parts of the city.

The news follows a June when 16 people were killed in Marion County. That puts Marion County on a pace for 150 homicides this year, which would leave it with statistics not seen in more than a decade. The news also follows a shooting death and reports of numerous large fights among youths in downtown Indianapolis streets the night of July Fourth.

As a destination spot, what happens 60 miles south in downtown Indianapolis has a considerable bearing on Greater Lafayette residents, beyond a distant accounting of the perils of living in the big city. If it's not perceived as safe ...

The problem Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department has also should be monitored for what it says about underlying causes being pointed out by community leaders there.

The Rev. Charles Harrison, president of Ten Point Coalition, a faith-based crime prevention group in Indianapolis, told The Indianapolis Star that police officers can't solve a run-up in violent crime on their own.

"Downtown was full of cops (on July Fourth), but yet those kids still went down there and committed murder. They're not afraid to go to jail. They're not afraid to die," Harrison said. "We have to reach these kids' hearts. We cannot jail and police our way out of this problem."

That train of thought speaks to efforts in recent years in Greater Lafayette to address a series of issues dealing with kids, ranging from child abuse to education to getting adults involved in any number of mentoring roles.

The idea echoes what Harrison said: There's long-term value in seeing kids, hearing them, listening to them, spending time with them, trusting them and setting expectations that start long before a they reach a principal's office or a courtroom.

Greater Lafayette is by no means in Indianapolis' situation. It's best to keep it that way.

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Editorial: Keeping a distant eye on Indy's homicides

Indianapolis' grim procession of homicides this year bears watching from a reasonable distance, here in Greater Lafayette, for at least a few reasons.